I need help making prints.

[davi]

Ok, i'm getting alot of requests to make prints lately.

How do i go about doing this?

also... how big can i be printing. I do most of my work at 300dpi and keep them around 900x800.

also how much should i be charging? I'm saying about $50 per print but if these are coming out reall small i might bring it down some.

[davi]

ugh now i have to print out a bunch of large pieces of art because some girl is going to do a show with me... i don't even know what's going on..

[Erik]

If that is 900 x 800 pixels at 300 dpi then it would be like 3 x 2.something inches ... :-/

I guess the best way is just to try with a detail to see how far you can blow it up. It all depends on how far the people will keep away and how bad it is to have pixels showing. It really depends on the paper too so try that out too!

300 dpi is about minimal if it's for regular print (in magazines) it usually should go 600 dpi.

If there are not enough pixels then scale up in photoshop to avoid pixels. The bicubic sampling should take care of those but it will become a bit blurry on edges...

BTW. i know a guy that prints stuff on canvas. It's quite expensive per print but with your stuff it would look really cool since you get this painting like structure. Maybe something to try out? He does it at a textile printing facility. The work is printed and then framed on a frame like a regular canvas painting.

Good luck!

[davi]

that's an amazing idea

what should i work on to get prints that are like...12" - 24"

[geckonia]

Hi Davi,

Do you have an inkjet? Epson says 240 dpi is more than enough resolution (at the size you want to print them at.) You can size them up pretty far in photoshop, but do it in baby steps... 110% at a time until you get there, that's the best way to do it instead on one big bump in size.

You can set your file size to 12x24 @ 150 dpi and bump it up when you're done... or just start at 12x24@240 dpi if you've got the ram. I usually start at 150, and bump it up.

I'd say $50 is a good place to start. If you make them a limited edition the price can go up as the edition sells.

[boehmke]

Davi-

I have been making prints on various types of water color paper on my printer at home. Recently I have been using 140 lbs. cold press. If you get really fiberous paper the ink spreads out a bit more and gives a very natural look. The only draw back is I can't print images bigger then 9X12 inches.

boehmke

[nardfrog]

What everybody said is pretty mush dead on. Dont waist your time printing anything over 300ppi (people say dpi, but that is wrong, dpi is something completely different) If you look in photoshop in image size it actual says pixels/inch as in PPI. If you are printing on a printer at home 150 - 300 is totaly fine, but dont go below 150. If you want really awsome prints i suggest going to a service bureau and make sure your image is in cmyk not rgb.

Almost all lazer and inkjet print in CMYK so it only makes sense to print in their language. If you got anymore questions, just ask, I majored in graphic design.
NERDLOG is here to help.

[Erik]

For 12"x8" - 24"x16" i suggest about 1800x1200 at 150dpi to 3600x2400 pix at 150 dpi.

or ppi. or whatever. anyway the number should be about 150 - 180 for good results i guess. Be sure to try out different settings!

I'd do what nardfrog says and go to a service shop or a Kinko's or wherever they have one of these big mutha laser printers - the results are mostly really good. Not sure if they let you bring special papers and stuff. I think you need Inkjet for those tricks.

Be sure to bring your photoshop for color corrections though! These printers sometimes do weird stuff!

[nardfrog]

DO NOT GO TO KINKOS!!!

THEY ARE COMPLETE ASSHOLES AND THEY CHARGE YOU FOR EVERY PRINT, EVEN IF THEY MESS IT UP!


Ive been to like 10 different and the experience is ALWAYS the same. They make things a pain and I know what IM doing.

Stay away from pronting Kinkos unless you know someone there.

[Erik]

You're right about Kinko's it sucks

But they know me in the Amsterdam outlet so i can do what i want if the right people are in.

[geckonia]

Originally posted by nardfrog
Almost all lazer and inkjet print in CMYK so it only makes sense to print in their language.

Yes, it is true inkjets print in CMYK... however, you need to send an Epson RGB files. When you send a CMYK file the print engine converts it back to RGB then converts it to CMYK for printing, so you clip colors unnecessarily. I know that sounds crazy, but it's true. That's why Epson recommends RGB. An IRIS printer (at a service bureau) doesn't do that... it prints from your CMYK file directly.

Digital art is more forgiving than photography. You can try 150 dpi and see if that's enough resolution.

[nardfrog]

Yeah, If you can find a place with an IRIS thats your best bet (lot of money though), If not go for something with fiery 2. Its good as well. About the RGB comment, every printer varies, so its good to know the specs for that particular printer to please it best.